The B&R Friday Radio Spot (on Thursday)
President Obama’s primetime press conference stupidly rendered tomorrow’s spot dated, so here it is early…
Written by Bob and edited by Jay at WJDF
A couple of days ago while picking up my morning coffee and doughnuts, I had a conversation with a friend about the whole black-Harvard-scholar-being-racially-profiled-and-arrested-in-his-Cambridge-Massachusetts-home thing. This friend assumed I would automatically side with the professor, and this whole incident was yet another example of racism in America.
Let me put my response in proper context.
I grew up in Cambridge and Harvard Square was my teen hangout. Back in the day, the unwritten rule was “Don’t mess with the Cambridge Police.” We called them Gestapo even though we really didn’t know much about what the Gestapo was. This fear was colorblind and gender neutral.
Also during my years of writing, I’ve had consistent disdain for celebrities who use that famous line, “Do you know who I am?” Whenever I hear that, my judgment becomes clouded because only arrogant, elites assume they are better than us, thus the rules don’t apply to them.
When hearing about the arrest of professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard, something just didn’t smell right.
The way the story’s been reported, Police arrived at Professor Gates’s home near Harvard Square to question him as he had trouble unlocking his door after it became jammed.
Now, without getting into my personal business, I have been pulled over. As a practice, I’m automatically in “Yes, sir”, “Yes, ma’am” mode with the police. I’ve always found that courtesy is usually quite disarming. And I’m just speculating because I’ve never done it, but going off on a police officer doesn’t strike me as the smartest thing to do… ever.
According to a police report, Professor Gates accused the investigating officer of being a racist and told him he had “no idea who he was messing with,” and that he was being targeted because “I’m a black man in America.”
The term “racial profiling” is negative code for police doing their job. If a disproportionate number of redheaded teens were seen as committing crime, it would be irresponsible of the cops to not keep an eye out for redheaded teens.
Cambridge, Massachusetts is 12% black. I haven’t been able to easily find the racial breakdown of crime there, and that may be due to the very liberal make-up of the city. But if blacks are committing more than 12% of the crime in the affluent area where the professoriate live, then the Cambridge police would be hassled for not following up on reports of suspicious behavior.
Professor Gates is in the race business and displayed elitism when all he had to do is cooperate. Mouthing off to cops gets congresspersons, multi-millionaire celebrities and athletes arrested, and the police know whom they’re messing with.
Should I side with Professor Gates just because he’s black? Many seem to believe I would and should. But if Gates fully cooperated with the police and was courteous, chances are this wouldn’t have escalated as it did.
I don’t make my money looking for racism, so I don’t see it when it’s not there.
July 23rd, 2009 at 10:20 am
Another Very Strong Performance!
When The Machine wore a badge, there were those of all races who spouted the old, “do you know who I am?” line at us.
The response was almost always, “Yes, I do. —Watch Your Head…”
From what I’ve been able to gather, it looks like the perfesser refused to comply with a lawful order that was presented as a quite reasonable request — “May I see your ID please?”
Then there’s the perfesser’s acting out on the front lawn to consider here.
It is not smart to attempt to hold court on the street.
And that’s what it sounds like he did.
July 23rd, 2009 at 11:11 am
Bob, nice audio clip. Seems to me from what I’ve read that the Professor is a pompous idiot and he got the minimum of what he deserved. Nobody likes to be hassled in their own home but it was not unreasonable for the Policeman to ask for identification.
July 23rd, 2009 at 1:51 pm
dayuum, our on-line-columnist is goooood!!!!
July 23rd, 2009 at 4:29 pm
fantastic, Bob. I always appreciate the perspective, and even more so regarding this gentleman. I didn’t know a whole about it, as the liberal MSM painted it as if it involved nothing but racist cops, but now I know the professor is like Al Sharpton or Jessie Jackson who SCREAM “racism” at the drop of a hat when they want.
Also, being in “Yes, sir..Yes Ma’am” mode when it comes to being pulled over for any reason is always a good idea, regardless of race. Hell, I was in a situation where a cop had pulled us over in a neighborhood, making sure we checked out because there was some violent creep in the area, so I definitely was in compliance mode – “Yes, Sir. Here’s my ID…etc etc etc”
again, more fantastic perspective here. You do a hell of a job of showing us the other side of the coin, for those of us who might’ve missed it
July 23rd, 2009 at 4:31 pm
also, I too an infinite amount of disgust for anybody who thinks their name is some automatic power when they say “Do you KNOW who I AM?”
July 23rd, 2009 at 8:38 pm
i just finished watching you on oreilly,and was very impressed.
i am proud to have you as a fellow american.
unlike a lot of people on orielly,like lamont hill,you have strenth of charachter,and secure in your life. you came on,not as an african american,but an american,and i know you are much at ease in your life,and it shows. you did not look at color as making a difference that you looked for,you looked for the truth.
July 23rd, 2009 at 9:28 pm
bob you are still a tom but i agree with you on this one!
July 24th, 2009 at 2:04 am
Excellent Bob. As you know I am a white Englishman, or at least my ancestors were. I, like you am an American & proud of it. I have been driving for over 50 years & as many of us do, I occasionally have been pulled over by Police Officers. The first thing I do is give the Officer my Drivers License, Registration & Insurance card. I also ask why I was stopped. I am polite & every officer, male or female, has been very polite & courteous. They always told me why I was stopped & I realize that is their job. I have only had one ticket & that was for a suspected equipment violation. Believe it or not this Officer was a personal friend of mine, but he gave me a ticket for something he believed to a violation. It turned out to be incorrect, but he was doing his job, just as the Officer in this incident was doing. Are there bad Police Officers? yes, of all races & genders. That doesn’t give me a right to be belligerent to an Officer regardless of whether I think he is wrong or not. He still has my respect, as he is doing a job that doesn’t pay enough to entice me to become a LEO. Even as a Firefighter, we get belligerent people badmouthing us for perceived failures to save their home or vehicle.
Public Servants require respect, as they perform a Service to the general public that most people would be afraid to do. To Protect & Serve is a special calling & most do it h
July 24th, 2009 at 2:05 am
Honorably.
July 24th, 2009 at 10:40 am
I can tell pretty much the identical story of the Oldnyfirefighter about myself.
And I’m black.
This is not a racial thing at all, it is a matter of how you personally act or react to the situation.
I will not contest whatever an officer of the law does on the street.
That is what the courtroom is for.
And, nine times out of ten, the judge will be on the side of the citizen, IF the citizen presents appropriately.
July 24th, 2009 at 10:45 am
Check out how this 72 year old WHITE grandma chose to handle a traffic stop.
She then claimed all sorts of things happened that did not happen.
Police Brutality, dontcha know.
The Dashcam saw things a bit differently:
Five warnings.
“Don’t tase me, bro!”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbnoDkS36Dc
Note well who was really lying here, even though she found time to tell lies to the newscam earlier on, when this tape got released she seemed unable to come to the door for an appointed interview…
Narcissim?
You bet.